Splicing system



Jan. 2, 1962' F. J. BARNES ErAL 3,015,255

SPLICING SYSTEM Filed Aug. 8, 1958 INVENTORS.

FREDERICK JOSEPH BAR/\ES W/LLMM JOHN NEUHAUSER g 12 4s 42 20 I M 7 Patented Jan. 2, 1962 3,015,255 SPLICING SYSTEM Frederick Joseph Barnes, Henrico County, Va., and Willliam John Neuhauser, .lefierson County, Ky., assignors to Reynolds Metals Company, Richmond, Jen, at corporation of Delaware Filed Aug. 8, 1958, Ser. No. 753,980 4 Claims. (Cl. 931.1)

This invention relates to splicing aluminum foil, particularly in its hard rolled condition before annealing.

Reduction rolling of aluminum foil has been developed to a point where intermediate annealing operations can be eliminated, with a consequent saving of cost of production. However, the rolled foil in its full hard condition makes it relatively brittle before it is annealed. Consequently, it has been considered impracticable to splice broken ends together by the technique of mashing the ends together until they adhere through a process of cold welding, particularly in the case of thin foil. Instead, it has been the accepted practice to use splicing tapes secured on opposite sides of the joined ends by adhesive, after the ends have been trimmed and placed in abutting end to end relation. This has introduced problems as a result of escape of the adhesive, which sticks adjacent coils together and thereby causes subsequent tears. Moreover, the additional thickness of the tapes along the length of the strip is particularly undesirable in the case of thin foil which is subsequently laminated to paper stock and then printed, because the alignment of the printing machinery may be disturbed if any spliced section of the foil is allowed to pass through the printing press. Furthermore, it is conventional to double two strips of foil, and run them together through the final roll stand, and the doubled strips are subsequently rerolled into separate rolls before annealing. When breaks occur during this operation, the application of tapes to both of the two strips presents a difilcult mechanical problem, because of the limited space available for that purpose in the rolling equipment which handles the two strips.

In accordance with the present invention, these dithculties are overcome by adhering the broken ends of the foil together by means which press the overlapped ends together to make a secure joint without the need of any auxiliary tape or adhesive. It has been found that presence of the rolling oil does not prevent adhesion when following the practice of the invention, and that the joint is so strong that the foil usually tears along a line away from the joint, rather than along or immediately next to the joint. The apparatus required is very simple to operate, and requires little space, so that it is particularly well adapted for use in cramped quarters, such as in conjunction with a separating machine for respooling a roll of doubled foil into separate rolls before annealing.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference is now made to the accompanying drawings, which show, for purposes of illustration only, the present preferred embodiment of the invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan elevation, partially broken away and sectioned, showing apparatus embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detailed view, partially broken away and sectioned, of part of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation of the roller and its carriage shown in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a side elevation of the assembly shown in FIG. 2, with the roller against a pair of overlapped foil ends.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, and initially to KG. 1, there is provided an anvil bar it and a guide bar 12 supported at their opposite ends in fixed bracket members 14 and 16. A carriage or case 18 is slidably mounted on the guide bar 12, and a spring pressed roller 2% projects from the case 18 and rolls against a flat hardened steel surface 22 of the anvil bar 10. In order to permit the insertion of foil between the roller 2 and anvil surface 22, the anvil bar 19 is removably mounted in the brackets 14 and 16. However, when the bars 149 and 12 are secured in the brackets 14 and 16, they are parallel to each other and at a predetermined distance apart, so that the roller 20 exerts a predetermined springloaded pressure against the anvil surface 22.

It is important that the roller should exert a controlled pressure where it bears against the anvil surface 22, and it has been found that the best and most reliable results have been obtained when the roller 2% has two spaced circular areas 2.4 and 26 of the same width and diameter, and each similarly knurled. The knurling preferably consists of a series of lines parallel to the axis of the roll 20, ranging for example from 10 to 300 per inch of circumferential inch of circumference, but preferably in the order of about per inch. The depth of the knurl indentations can vary with the tlr'ckness of the foil to be joined, but, for example, is 0.004 inch for purposes of joining foil having a single gauge thickness in the order of 0.00035 inch. The width of the roller 21? and its knurled areas 24 and 215 is not critical, except to the extent that it influences the required spring-loading. For example, when the areas 24 and 26 are each /s inch wide, the spring-loading is preferably such that the roller 2!? exerts a total pressure of 50 pounds against the foil on the anvil surface 22, for purposes of joining aluminum foil having a gauge in the order of 0.00035 inch. Foil of this gauge is of particular significance for the purposes of the invention, because it is the foil gauge most used for laminating printing stock, where the advantages of the invention are of the greatest importance.

In order to balance the pressures on the knurled areas 24 and 26 of the roller 20, and thereby prevent the weak ening of the joint in the foil which might occur if one area were pressed with substantially greater force than the other, the roller 20 is mounted for free tilting movement of its axis of rotation in a plane through said axis normal to the line of travel of the case 18 and is journaled on a pin 28 supported at its opposite ends in a slotted block 30. The roller 29 extends beyond the slot through the block 3:), and a pair of studs 32 and 34 extend integrally from the opposite ends or" the block 3% along a line which is parallel to the bars 10 and 12, and offset from the pin 28 in the direction of the anvil bar 10. The studs 32 and 34 are respectively journaled in a pair of blocks 36 and 38. The blocks 3%, 36 and 38 are all inserted in a slot milled into the end of the case 18 facing the anvil bar 10, and the block 36 is pivotally connected to the case 18 by a pair of studs 40 extending from opposite sides of the block 36 through the case 18 in a direction parallel to the pin 28. The blocks 36 and 38 are thereby secured together by the studs 32 and 34 to pivot as a unitary group about the studs 50 on the case 18, and this pivotal movement is limited by a pair of studs 42 extending from opposite ends of the block 38 through arcuate slots 44 cut through the case 18. A coil compression spring 46 is mounted beneath the block 38, with one end of the spring bearing against the central portion of the case 18, and the other end pressing against the block 38 to urge it in the direction of the anvil bar 10 (for example, with a force in the order of 25 pounds). When the anvil bar it is mounted in the brackets 14 and 16, the roller 2%) presses against the anvil surface 22, and the studs 42 are at a position near the mid dle of the arcuate slots 4 When the anvil bar 10 is removed from the brackets 14 and 16, the studs 42 reach the ends of the arcuate slots 44, and thereby limit outward movement of the roller 20 in response to the action of the spring 45.

The end of the case 18 facing away from the anvil bar is likewise milled out, and receives the guide bar 12 in snug sliding relation. A cap member 48 is secured by bolts 50 across the open end of the slot of the case 118 which receives the guide bar 12, in order to hold the case 18 securely on the bar 12. A handle knob 52 is preferably secured on one side of the case 18, to facilitate drawing it along the length of the bar 12.

When broken ends of a strip of foil are to be spliced together, the anvil bar 153 is removed to permit applying them in overlapping relation across the anvil bar surface 22, and then the anvil bar 10 is mounted in its predetermined position between the brackets 14 and 16. The knob is then grasped by the operator, and the case 13 is drawn across the length of the bar 12 once, which is sufiicient to enable the roller 20 to press the overlapped foil ends against each other with suiiicient force to secure them together along two parallel areas where the knurled surfaces 24 and 26 press the foil against the fiat anvil surface 22. The excess ends of the foil beyond the joint are then trimmed away, and the spliced strip can be passed on through the subsequent operations of respooling, annealing and other operations, including laminating and subsequent printing, for example.

While present preferred embodiments and practices of the invention have been illustrated and described, it will be understood that the invention is not limited thereto, but may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. Apparatus for joining overlapping ends of aluminum foil strip, comprising means presenting an anvil surface on which the overlapped foil ends can rest, guide means extending parallel to said anvil surface, a knurled roller adapted to roll against the overlapped foil ends on said anvil surface, a carriage mounted for movement along said guide means, means mounting the knurled roller pm the carriage for free tilting movement of its rotational axis in a plane through said axis normal to the line of travel of said carriage whereby substantially uniform pressure is achieved between the roller and the foil, and means resiliently urging the knurled roller toward the anvil surface as the roller rolls against the overlapped foil resting on the anvil surface.

2. Apparatus for joining overlapping ends of aluminum foil strip, comprising means presenting an anvil surface on which the overlapped foil ends can rest, guide means extending parallel to said anvil surface, a carriage mounted for movement along said guide means, a knurled roller supported by said carriage and adapted to roll against the overlapped foil ends on said anvil surface, means providing free tilting movement of said roller relative to said carriage in a plane normal to the line of travel of the carriage and through the rotational axis of the roller, and

means resiliently urgingthe knurled roller toward the anvil surface as the roller rolls against the overlapped foil resting on the anvil surface.

3. Apparatus for joining overlapping ends of aluminum foil strip, comprising means presenting an anvil surface on which the overlapped foil ends can rest, guide means extending parallel to said anvil surface, a knurled roller adapted to roll against the overlapped foil ends on said anvil surface, said roller having a pair of spaced annular knurled surfaces around its outer peripheryi a carriage mounted for movement along said guide means, means mounting the knurled roller on the carriage for free tilting movement of its rotational axis in a plane through said axis normal to the line of travel of said carriage, and means rcsiliently urging the knurled roller toward the anvil surface as the roller rolls against the overlapped foil resting on the anvil surface.

4. Apparatus for joining overlapping end of aluminum foil strip, comprising means presenting an anvil surface on which the overlapped foil ends can rest, guide means extending parallel to said anvil surface, a knurled roller adapted to roll against the overlapped foil ends on said anvil surface, said roller having a pair of spaced annular knurled surfaces each about one-eighth inch wide around its outer periphery, a carriage mounted for movement along said guide means, means mounting the knurled roller on the carriage for free tilting movement of its rotational axis in a plane through said axis normal to the line of travel of said carriage, and means resiliently urging the knurled roller toward the anvil surface as the roller rolls against the overlapped foil resting on the anvil surface, said resilient means exerting a total force of about 50 pounds of the roller against the foil.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHER REFERENCES Materials & Methods (A. B. Sowter), November 1948, pages to 63. 

